Pope Francis leads a prayer service with Italian bishops in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican May 23. More than 200 bishops reconfirmed their faith during the service. (CNS photo/Paul Haring, May 24, 2013)

“The consequence of the love of the Lord is to give
everythingexactly everything, even one’s own lifefor Him: This is that which
ought to distinguish our pastoral ministry. It is the ‘acid test’ that bespeaks
the profundity that we have embraced, the gift we have received. By responding
to the call of Jesus, we show how much we are bound to the persons and the
communities that have been entrusted to us.”

At one point in his homily during the Episcopal Ordination
of Michael Barber, S. J. to the See of Oakland, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone
of San Francisco, himself Barber’s predecessor in Oakland, told him that, at
times, he would seem to be alone with huge problems on his shoulders. But he
must remember that he is part of an episcopal college, men bound together in
the same faith and love. He will not be alone. These words reminded me of those
that I came across in Pope Francis’ reflections with the Italian bishops, his “Cari
Fratelli nell’Episcopato.”

Pope Francis likes to reflect out-loud, as it were, with
fellow bishops. He prefers to call himself “the bishop of Rome.” The bishops
had evidently just heard the famous passage of the Lord’s asking Peter thrice
whether he loved Him, words that upset Peter at the time. “Such words,” the
pope said, “have caused me to reflect very much.” He wanted to share his
“meditation” with the these bishops.

The pope said that it was particularly appropriate that his
first meeting with the Italian bishops should be at the tomb of Peter. Here we
can also remember Peter’s “testimony of faith, his service to truth, and his
giving himself even to martyrdom for the Gospel and the Church.” Essential to
the reality of the Church is its memory of what it is, of what happened to its
members, where and why.

This Altar of Confession, where they all were gathered,
could be taken for the image of the Lake of Tiberius, the Pope said. It was
here that Peter received his commission to “feed my sheep.” On the banks of
this lake, the amazing dialogue of Peter and Christ took place. Christ directed
His questions to Peter, but they should resound in the heart of every bishop.

Pope Brogoglio then slowly repeated the question three
times: “Peter, do you love Me?” In fact, this love is the one essential
question whereby alone a bishop can take care of his flock. “Every ministry is
founded on this intimacy with the Lord.” This love is the “measure” of
ecclesial service which is expressed by our “disponibility” to obedience, to
our total giving of our selves. We are to be bound to the “persons and the
communities entrusted to us.” This is the “acid test” of our service.

II.

The pope then tells us what bishops are not, or ought not to
be. “We are not the expression of a structure or an organizational necessity.”
Even in the service of our authority, we are called to be signs of the
“presence and action of the risen Lord.” Hence we are to erect the community in
“fraternal charity.” We assume here, of course, that bishops are not to run
shoddy or inefficient organizations in the necessary administration that they
have to do.

We have to be “careful.” “Even the greatest of loves when
they are not constantly nourished become enfeebled and “go out.” Here Francis
cites the famous passage from Paul (Acts 20:28): It is not for nothing that
Paul warns us: “Watch over yourselves and your flock; in the midst of which the
Holy Spirit has made you to be guardians of the flock of the Church of God that
he has established with His own blood.”

We know very well that this lack of vigilance to small
things makes the shepherd “tepid.” He is “distracted, forgetful, and even
insufferable.” The prospect of a “career, the desire for money, and compromises
with the spirit of the world weigh on him.” They transform him into a
“functionary, a cleric who is mainly preoccupied with himself, with
organizations and structures, rather than the true good of the People of God.”
He runs the risk, then, as did the Apostle Peter, of denying the Lord, even if
formally he “speaks” in His name. He obscures the “holiness” of the
hierarchical Mother Church. He renders her less fecund.”

Needless to say, this is quite a list! Obviously, such
aberrations seem to arise out of the pope’s ecclesiastical experience. He is
not speaking of abstractions, though he does not give names and numbers.
Benedict XVI, in Deus Caritas Est, had
confronted the same problem of why a bureaucracy as such could not really do
what charity was intended to do, reach the actual persons in need. Francis
reduces the causes of these aberrations to the central one asked of Peter by
Christ: “Do you love Me?”

Yet, as I say, something ought to be said in favor of those
bishops who run tight ships and in caution to those who do not, even if both
love Christ equally. The Church and state impose enormous bureaucratic
obligations on bishops and dioceses. The laity do not deserve “functionaries,”
but they do not deserve inefficiency either. Delays and difficulties in dealing
with Church offices is often a major complaint often heard.

The pope speaks familiarly with his bishops. “My brothers,
who are we before God? What are our trials? We have so many; every one of us
knows his own. What things do we say to God about them? Do we know what things
support us in overcoming them?” The pope here speaks as a wise fellow pastor, a
bit mindful of what Archbishop Cordileone told Bishop Barber--others are there
to help us.

III.

As with Peter, the persistent questions of Jesus alert us to
the fact that we are weak in our freedom. We are besieged with millions of
internal and external conditions that often incite “errors, frustrations, and
even unbelief.” Certainly, the Lord does not intend to arouse these attitudes
in us, but they “profit our enemy, the Devil, who wants to isolate us in our
bitterness, laments, and discouragements.” This pope specks much of the “spiritual
warfare” that, more often than we admit, tempts and unsettles us, makes us
aware that the cause of Christ is being actively combatted by what the Apostle
John called “this world” and its agents.

Jesus, the good Shepherd, does not abandon us in our
remorse. In Him appears the “tenderness” of the Father who consoles and sends
us off again. We pass from the separateness of shame. We gain the courage to
take up “responsibility for our mission.”

Peter, purified by the “fire of pardon,” can humbly say:
“Lord you know everything. You know that I love you.” The pope adds: “I am
certain that all of us can say this from our hearts.” Peter, once purified, can
go on in his first Letter to say that we should feed the flock of God. We
should watch over it not because we are constrained, but voluntarily, not from
shameful interest, but from “a generous soul.” We are not masters over persons. We should be “models” for
the flock.

To be pastors means to believe
every day in the grace and power that comes from the Lord in spite of our own
weakness. We even assume the responsibility of going before the flock. We want
them to recognize our voice whether they be of our flock or those from another
sheepfold. God’s law does not make any distinction of persons. ...

To be pastors, we must also dispose
ourselves to walk in the midst of or behind the flock. We must be capable of
listening to the flock, to the silence of those who suffer. We must sustain the steps of those who
fear to take them. We must be able to give hope to others. The bishops should
have particular love for their priests.

The pope tells them in Italian: “Ámiaamoli! Amiamoli di
cuore! Sono i nostril figli e nostril fratelli!”´--Love them! Love them in your hearts! They are our sons and brothers.

The bishops then made a profession of faith together with
Pope Francis. The pope tells them: “Let it not be merely a formal act but a
renewal of our responsibility to ‘Follow Me’ with which the Gospel of John
concludes. They must dispose their present lives to follow God’s project,
bearing it all for the Lord. From this short exchange of Francis with the
Italian bishops, we can discern the “burden of thoughts, concerns, and
necessities of the men of our time.” We can also, I think, see something of the
way this pope has chosen to deal with his Office as Bishop of Rome.

All comments posted at Catholic World Report are moderated. While vigorous debate is welcome and encouraged, please note that in the interest of maintaining a civilized and helpful level of discussion, comments containing obscene language or personal attacks—or those that are deemed by the editors to be needlessly combative and inflammatory—will not be published. Thank you.